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DISPATCH 02/26 · 26 Jun 2026
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GlobalEye

The "eye in the sky" that broke Boeing's monopoly — Saab's GlobalEye puts a long-range AESA radar on a business jet to watch air, sea and land at once, out past 550 km. Flown by the UAE, Sweden and France, it was picked in 2026 to replace NATO's ageing AWACS fleet.

· 7 min read
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ChinaPro

KJ-500

China's most numerous modern AEW&C platform — a Y-9-based turboprop carrying a fixed three-array AESA radar for 360° coverage, in service with both the PLAAF and PLANAF and reportedly sought by Pakistan.

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RussiaPro

A-50 Mainstay

Russia's 1980s-era AEW&C aircraft on the Il-76 airframe, known for its rotating Shmel radome—a fleet severely diminished by two combat losses in early 2024.

4
USAPro

E-7 Wedgetail

The E-7 Wedgetail is Australia's and the US's next-generation AEW&C aircraft, built on a Boeing 737-700 airframe and equipped with a fixed MESA AESA radar — the chosen successor to the E-3 Sentry across NATO and a growing allied fleet.

5
ChinaPro

Y-20

China's first indigenous strategic airlifter — a four-engine heavy transport known as the Kunpeng that bridges the PLA's force-projection gap, and the basis for a fast-growing aerial tanker fleet that extends Chinese airpower far beyond the first island chain.

6
RussiaPro

Il-76

Russia's heavy four-engine strategic airlifter, in service since 1974 and now modernised as the Il-76MD-90A with PS-90A engines, serving as the backbone of operational lift and the platform for the A-50 AWACS and Il-78 tanker.

7
USAPro

C-17 Globemaster III

The Boeing C-17 Globemaster III is a long-range heavy airlifter that combines intercontinental reach with the ability to operate from short, austere airfields, serving as the backbone of U.S. and allied strategic airlift since 1995.